GENDER
JUSTICE
MAINE’S ROAD TO
The Maine Women’s Lobby was founded at a time of optimism, when the fight for women’s rights was working for and securing powerful gains that made tangible, material impacts in the lives of women and girls. From securing access to credit (1978) to eliminating the exemption for marital rape (1985), there was a slow march toward equity that many thought would inevitably move forward until we achieved parity.
And yet. We find ourselves a time when the data shows that critical gains simply have not been made. On most key indicators of wellness, from gender-based violence to the impact of care on the economy (and caregivers’ careers!) progress has been made but never fully secured. And on some - such as the dramatic decrease in access to reproductive health care - we are seeing significant decline. And as our understanding of gender and the impact of misogyny on LGBTQ+ and community members grows, and our understanding of gender as it intersects with race, class, and other oppressions grows, so too does our work.
In a time when the indicators are going backward and policy gains are unraveling at the federal level, it feels like the house is on fire.
But every good fire safety plan begins with a map, tools, and achievable action steps.
This Roadmap seeks to lay out the core issues affecting gender equity in Maine, the primary areas where our organization has the tools and resources to make a difference, and the steps we are taking to get there.
We don’t do this work alone. Much of the Roadmap is informed by our key partners and experts in the field. Additionally, many of the policy steps below are led in coalition or by one or more of our partners. We are grateful to have so many partners working for gender equity alongside us.
Policy work is slow and steady, the work of years of planning and incremental change, which can be hard when we face a fire of rising misogyny we must put out. But we have the proof that it can be done, and we have a plan to get there. Maine’s Road to Gender Justice looks at the key trends and forces affecting gender equity right now - and the policy solutions that will drive real change to achieve equality.
KEY ISSUES
Through our conversations with communities across Maine, we identified key issues that drive gender inequity. Here we provide a snapshot of why each issue is important, look at current data, and outline policy recommendations that will move us closer to gender equity.
Learn more about how we created the 2025-2026 Roadmap to Gender Justice.
“Equal rights in Maine will encompass all our citizens.”
DEVELOPING EQUITABLE &
ACCESSIBLE GOVERNMENT
— The Honorable Lois Galgay Reckitt (1944 - 2023)
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We must write ourselves into history.
Gender equality is currently up for debate in State Legislatures, in the U.S. Congress and by the Supreme Court. The U.S. Constitution is the foundational legal document that provides a framework for our country’s legal and political systems, and yet there remains a glaring omission, gender equality.
In writing, using superscript can help to streamline information that might clutter the main text. When properly implemented, superscripts enhance readability and provide clarity without overwhelming the reader with additional information. It is important to ensure that the use of superscript is consistent and contextually appropriate throughout a document.
The absence of explicitly outlining gender equality in the Constitution opens a pathway to roll back efforts to pass laws for gender justice and we have seen these rollbacks in recent years, most notably seen in the Dobbs decision in 2022 where the Supreme Court reversed the right to reproductive autonomy.
To ensure that the laws that are passed to move us toward gender justice do get reversed or undone, we must state gender equality in our founding documents at both the federal and state levels.
The efforts to secure the federal Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) is over 100 years old. The ERA has met all constitutional requirements to be added as the 28th Amendment to the US Constitution. However, the political debate within the US Congress has brought the efforts to a standstill.³
The procedural issues in Congress clearly show the deep rooted sexism and misogyny that exist within our government and political spheres. When we see pushback like this at the federal level, we must also look to our own state to see where we stand. State ERAs can provide these similar protections and be able to secure that laws advancing gender justice are not undone.
In Maine we have an opportunity to inform and educate our own communities about this effort and to move in the direction of equality for all and expand the ERA to include more than gender.
The US Constitution recognizes that tribes generally have the same power as federal and state governments. This means that federally recognized tribes have the right to regulate affairs on their tribal lands, the right to sustain their traditional values and practices, establish their government, enact legislation and establish their own government systems. In Maine this inherent tribal sovereignty is being denied due to the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act in 1980. The Settlement Act meant to be a living document to be improved upon, however, this promise has not been fulfilled.
Similar to the efforts to support the ERA, the efforts for tribal sovereignty forwarded by the Wabanaki Alliance, is not to secure more privileges but to establish equity and fairness by having the same or similar sovereignty as the more than 500 other tribes across America.
Representation mattersDiversity within our government is not just about fairness, it is about building more effective systems that reflect the needs of everyone, including the most marginalized members of our communities. We know that women make up roughly 50% of the population and yet only represent 28% of the US Congress, 33% of the U.S. Judiciary (44% of the Supreme Court), 24% of State Governors, and 32% of all State Legislatures. In Maine we are working on building a representative government, but we are not there yet – women make up 50% of Maine’s Congressional delegation, 42.5% of the Legislature, and in 2019 elected the state’s first woman Governor. We also must recognize when we look at representation through an intersectional lens (including race, national origin, socioeconomic status, and age) these numbers dwindle further and further away from any true parity with our communities.
Representation in government matters, because our government at all levels and within all branches, has a significant impact on our daily lives. When more women are in elected and appointed to government positions, we are more likely to see advancement in policies related to issues that affect women, like women’s health, care issues, and gender rights. It also opens the doors of government to more women and builds the confidence of future generations to fill these roles.
We must put our money where our mouth is.As we build a more equitable government, we must be reminded that equity is not about parity. For governments to be more just and equitable, resources must be collected equitably, and then allocated in such a way that everyone is able to participate in our society. Tax cuts for the wealthy in Maine in 2012 significantly increased the disparity in tax payments between the rich and poor in Maine, and 2017 tax cuts at the federal level primarily benefited wealthy households and large corporations, and failed to deliver promised benefits for working families: The top 1% saw an increase to after-tax incomes nearly three times the size of households in the bottom 60%.
Equitable systems also include dedicated funding for data collection, analysis, and implementation. This process can help us better understand how our systems are working – or not working – for our community members. It is important to invest the time and money in gender justice to collect and review the data, and take it one step further to make recommendations for our future lawmakers that are based on the lived experience of women and gender minorities in Maine.
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Protecting and defending democracy.
Government systems, data, and policies that explicitly address and correct historic inequity and oppression.
Leadership for and by affected people, including Tribal sovereignty and representation of historically excluded communities in positions of power. -
Where We’ve Been:
Important steps were taken in the 131st Legislature to restore the Wabanaki Nation's inherent right to self-determination and self-governance by strengthening tribal criminal jurisdiction and the tribal court system, an important element of addressing the high rates of sexual and domestic violence that Indigenous women experience.
The 131st Legislature restored dedicated funding to Maine’s Permanent Commission on the Status of Women, ensuring that the Commission had a dedicated staff member for the first time since the 1990s.
Where We’re Going:
Inclusive ERA: We must amend the Constitution of Maine to ensure protection from discrimination based on gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, religion, ability, age, and nation of origin. Systemic challenges need systemic solutions, embedded in state government.
Creating more representative leadership by recognizing care work in clean elections and legislative compensation.
Recognizing the sovereignty of the Wabanaki people. We’re proud members of the Wabanaki Alliance. Learn more here.
Protecting voting access. This means turning back efforts to restrict voting through voter ID or other means of suppression. We’re proud members of Mainers for Modern Elections. Learn more here.
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Realizing Sex Equality: A Model Policy Agenda, written by the ERA Project- This report offers an in depth look at how states can advance gender justice through Equal Rights Amendments in their state constitutions. The Model Policy Agenda takes an intersectional approach to address gender discrimination and offers recommendations for assessment, action and prevention.
Task Force on Changes to the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Implementing Act Recommendations- The report from the Legislative Task Force is a robust document that details the Task Force process, offers 22 consensus recommendations, and provides legal discussion of each recommendation. For an easy to understand explainer on the recommendations visit the Wabanaki Alliance Task Force Explainer page.
We the Women: The Unstoppable Mothers of the Equal Rights Amendment by Julie Suk - This book shows how the founding mothers of the ERA and the forgotten mothers of all our children have transformed our living Constitution for the better. We have copies of Professor Suk’s book in our lending library — email us if you need help getting a copy. You can also hear Professor Suk at our ERA Summer Webinar Series in 2024.
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1 Bleiweis, R. (2020, Jan). The Equal Rights Amendment: What you need to know. Center for American Progress. https://www.americanprogress.org/article/equal-rights-amendment-need-know/
2 Center for Reproductive Rights. (2022). https://reproductiverights.org/case/scotus-mississippi-abortion-ban/
3 Cohen, A., Codrington III, W.U. (2020, January). The Equal Rights Amendment explained. Brennan Center for Justice.
4 Young, N., Cheng, T.T., Franke, K., & Hadjiivanova, L. (2024, September). Realizing sex equality: A model policy agenda for state Equal Rights Amendments. ERA Project. Columbia Law School. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/66aa9822adba826123133833/t/66edd26458825456f1b43190/1726861939756/Realizing+Sex+Equality+%E2%80%93+A+Model+Policy+Agenda.pdf
5 Wabanaki Alliance. (2024). Understanding tribal sovereignty. https://www.wabanakialliance.com/sovereignty/
6 Wabanaki Alliance. (2024). Who we are. https://www.wabanakialliance.com/who-we-are/
7 Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP). 2024. Current numbers. Center for American Women and Politics, Eagleton Institute of Politics, Rutgers University-New Brunswick. https://cawp.rutgers.edu/facts/current-numbers
8 Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP). 2024. “Maine.” Center for American Women and Politics, Eagleton Institute of Politics, Rutgers University-New Brunswick. https://cawp.rutgers.edu/facts/state-state-information/maine
9 Volden, C., Wiseman, A. E., & Wittmer, D. E. (2018). Women’s Issues and Their Fates in the US Congress. Political Science Research and Methods, 6(4), 679–696. doi:10.1017/psrm.2016.32; https://united-we.org/new-blog/2024/3/26/why-representation-matters
10 Atkeson, L. R., & Carrillo, N. (2007). More is Better: The Influence of Collective Female Descriptive Representation on External Efficacy. Politics & Gender, 3(1), 79–101. doi:10.1017/S1743923X0707002X, https://united-we.org/new-blog/2024/3/26/why-representation-matters
11 Young, N., Cheng, T.T., Franke, K., & Hadjiivanova, L. (2024, September). Realizing sex equality: A model policy agenda for state Equal Rights Amendments. ERA Project. Columbia Law School. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/66aa9822adba826123133833/t/66edd26458825456f1b43190/1726861939756/Realizing+Sex+Equality+%E2%80%93+A+Model+Policy+Agenda.pdf
12 Maine’s Permanent Commission on the Status of Women. (2022). Count us in: Maine women, data, and the care economy. https://www.maine.gov/sos/womens-comm/documents/2022%20PCSW%20The%20Care%20Economy.pdf
“We are real people deserving of equal rights and treatment.”
— Maulian Bryant, Wabanaki Alliance
“Having paid family and medical leave really helped to support my mental health journey when my third child was born.”
BUILDING CARE INFRASTRUCTURE
& WORKER EQUITY
— Mitchell
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Navigating a minefield of gender-based workplace discrimination and harassment.
Economic empowerment is an essential pathway to achieving gender equity. Women and gender-diverse people have always played vital roles in supporting their communities, however, their work has gone undervalued, underpaid, unrecognized and unpaid. Occupational segregation continues to exist for women and gender-diverse people, which lays the foundation for leadership and wage gaps, as well as opening the door for continued workplace discrimination. In fact, sexual harassment is a type of discrimination so pervasive in many industries that experiencing it feels like part of the job - especially for women and queer people. Industries that rely on lower-wage, female-dominated workforces are more likely to have high rates of sexual harassment.
Care is the work that makes all other work possible.
Women’s work has often been seen as supplementary rather than central to economic structures, leading to devaluing of the care economy – paid and unpaid care work of looking after the physical, emotional, and developmental needs of others. Care work is also highly gendered, in Maine nearly 85% of caregivers are women. Providing this invisible care work comes at a cost, of the 166,000 caregivers in Maine their unpaid care is valued at $2.9 billion. This limits caregivers’ and parents’ – mostly women’s – ability to fully participate in the workplace, save for retirement, access health insurance, and reduces their Social Security benefits later in life. The undervaluing of the care economy and the invisible unpaid work that women and gender-diverse individuals provide creates a wage gap that only accumulates over time. In fact, Maine women between the ages of 35 and 44 have higher rates of poverty compared to men, and although this improves in middle age this disparity returns s women age – Maine women over the age of 75 live in poverty at twice the rate of men.
Care work is hard work.
The lack of a care infrastructure doesn’t only harm family caregivers it harms paid caregivers. In part because the childcare and direct care workforces are so undervalued, they are facing critical workforce shortages, which exacerbates demand and decreases affordability for all families. Additionally, the lack of care infrastructure requires families to continue to rely on unpaid and informal care, which depresses women’s workforce participation and the economy as a whole. Professional caregivers - regardless if they care for children, older adults, or differently abled people—are also underpaid and undervalued. Most of these workers are women and, nationally, they are more likely to be women of color. These roles are uniquely undervalued in part because they are traditionally ‘women’s roles.’
The wage gap gets wider as women get older.
Over time, this systemic undervaluation has limited economic mobility for marginalized groups, widening pay gaps and putting women and gender diverse workers at a cumulative disadvantage. This is exacerbated by the fact that women, especially women of color, make up a disproportionate share of workers earning low wages and often work in undervalued, female-dominated occupations, such as home health aides or childcare workers. However, wage disparities remain an issue even in higher wage professions. Research shows that when women join industries that pay more, wages go down as employers value the work less. Together, these wage disparities in female-dominated industries (and across the board), undervalued labor, and unpaid care work means that women enter their older years far less financially secure than men. The wage gap is cumulative, creating a future where thousands of older Maine women can't meet their basic needs and leaving women and gender diverse people behind.
Making work work is intersectional.
Economic disparities only widen when considering intersectionality of the issues. Discrimination is disproportionately perpetrated against people who have less resources and work lower wage jobs, affecting women and people of color at higher rates. For example, we know that nearly half of LGBTQ+ workers experience workplace discrimination, including being fired, not hired, not promoted, or being verbally, physically, or sexually harassed. However, these rates increase significantly for trans and nonbinary workers compared to cisgender workers, for people of color compared to white employees, and for those who are out at work compared to those who are not. This contributes to the wage gap for LGBTQ+ workers and increases rates of poverty for queer folks, all of which increases when looking at gender and race. When people have multiple marginalized identities (for example, a Black trans woman) the likelihood that they must navigate these discriminatory barriers increases, widens pay gaps, and demands explicit and intentional solutions.
“We [women] put what we think is important far ahead of taking care of our own economic security, and although this is really important to do it's not fair.” -Rep. Osher (context around low pay of Legislators and elected officials.)
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Protecting and defending democracy.
Government systems, data, and policies that explicitly address and correct historic inequity and oppression.
Leadership for and by affected people, including Tribal sovereignty and representation of historically excluded communities in positions of power. -
Where we’ve been
A monumental win in the previous biennium was the passing of a Paid Family and Medical Leave system for Maine. Starting in January 2026, Mainers will be able to take up to 12 weeks of paid leave in order to care for new children or sick loved ones. This policy is critical to ensuring caregivers do not lose paychecks, or employment.
Important changes were also made to support childcare and care workers including raising childcare workforce salary improvements, and increasing subsidies and access to Head Start for families who need it. Additionally, a tax credit was created for people who are caregivers to dependents.
Where we’re going
Addressing lack of affordable childcare: We can address the high cost of child care for families by supporting childcare providers so they can lower costs while maintaining their workforce. We can do this by ensuring that child care is affordable by limiting overall costs to families to a certain percentage of income, and expanding the state subsidy program.
Building more equitable workplaces: We can increase pay equity and transparency by requiring that any posting of an employment opening includes the position pay range, and employers maintain a record of positions and their pay scales. We can also promote more flexible work arrangements to help accommodate care needs that often fall to women and limit their ability to fully participate in the workplace, save for retirement, find time to give back to our communities, and do what they need to for their families.
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Report on Women's Labor and Economic Security written by the Maine Permanent Commission on the Status of Women -This report pulls together information from publicly available data sources to tell the story of Maine women’s labor and economic security. The 2024 Biennial Report offers key recommendations for action, that incorporate the expertise from Maine organizations building a more equitable future for women, girls, and all Maine residents.
The Age of Dignity: Preparing for the Elder Boom in a Changing America, by Ai-jen Poo - This book outlines a road map for how we can become a more caring nation, providing solutions for fixing our fraying safety net while also increasing opportunities for women, immigrants, and the unemployed in our workforce. As Poo has said, “Care is the strategy and the solution toward a better future for all of us.”
Making Motherhood Work from the Scholars Strategy Network’s Podcast - More moms today are struggling to balance work and family life, often with little support. Professor Caitlyn Collins breaks down how US moms are doing these days, how our family support system compares to other countries, and what needs to change to better support working mothers year-round.
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13 Mason, J., and Gallagher Robbins, K. (2023, March). Women's work is undervalued, and it's costing us billions (Issue Brief). National Partnership for Women and Families. https://nationalpartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/womens-work-is-undervalued.pdf
14 Zhavoronkova, M., Khattar, R., and Brady, M. (2022, March). Occupational segregation in America (Report). Center for American Progress. https://www.americanprogress.org/article/occupational-segregation-in-america/
15 Office of Enterprise Data and Analytics. (2022, April). Sexual harassment in our nation’s workplaces (Data Highlight No. 2). U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. https://www.eeoc.gov/data/sexual-harassment-our-nations-workplaces
16 Sears, B., Castleberry, N., Lin, A., and Mallory, C. (2024, August). LGBTQ people’s experiences of workplace discrimination and harassment (Report). UCLA, School of Law, Williams Institute. https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/publications/lgbt-workplace-discrimination/
17 Frye, J. (2017, November). Not just the rich and famous: The pervasiveness of sexual harassment across industries affects all workers. Center for American Progress. https://www.americanprogress.org/article/not-just-rich-famous/
18 Line Carpenter, C., Staab, S., and Bidegain, N. (2023, March). New economics for sustainable development: Purple economy (care economy+) (Policy Brief). United Nations Economist Network. https://www.un.org/sites/un2.un.org/files/purple_economy_14_march.pdf
19 Edris, N., Gattine, E.,Ciolfi, M.L., Dumont, R., Leighton, A., Olsen, L., Pratt, J., Snow, K. (2020, March). Maine state plan on aging: Needs assessment (Summary of Findings). University of Southern Maine, Muskie School of Public Service, Cutler Institute.Prepared for Office of Aging and Disability Services, Maine Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/sites/maine.gov.dhhs/files/inline-files/2020-2024_Maine_State_Plan_on_Aging_Needs_Assessment_Report.pdf
20 AARP Maine. (2023). Family caregivers in Maine provide 2.9 billion in unpaid care to loved ones.https://states.aarp.org/maine/valuing-invaluable-report
21 Snow, K., Ciolfi, M.L., Pearson, K., Dumont, R., Pratt, J., Foley, J. (2024, January). Maine state plan on aging needs assessment (Final Report). University of Southern Maine, Muskie School of Public Service, Cutler Institute.Prepared for Office of Aging and Disability Services, Maine Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.maine.gov/dhhs/sites/maine.gov.dhhs/files/inline-files/SPOA-Final-Report-2024.pdf
22 Maine Healthcare Association. (2021). Long term care workforce shortage crisis: Who will care or ME?. https://www.mehca.org/files/Advocacy/StaffingShortages_2021.pdf
23 Olivetti, C., Petrongolo, B. (2017). The economic consequences of family policies: Lessons from a century of legislation in high-income countries. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 31 (1): 205–30. https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257%2Fjep.31.1.205
24 Oxfam. (2016, November 28). Undervalued and underpaid in America: The deck is stacked against millions of working women [Report]. https://s3.amazonaws.com/oxfam-us/www/static/media/files/Undervalued_FINAL_Nov30.pdf
25 Levanon, A., England, P., Allison, P. Occupational feminization and pay: Assessing causal dynamics using 1950–2000 U.S. Census Data, Social Forces, Volume 88, Issue 2, December 2009, Pages 865–891, https://doi.org/10.1353/sof.0.0264
26 Boesch, D. (2019, October). Rhetoric vs. reality: Not all paid leave proposals are equal [Report]. Center for American Progress. https://www.americanprogress.org/article/rhetoric-vs-reality-not-paid-leave-proposals-equal/
27 Levanon, A., England, P., Allison, P. (2009, December). Occupational feminization and pay: Assessing causal dynamics using 1950–2000 U.S. Census Data, Social Forces, Volume 88, Issue 2, Pages 865–891, https://doi.org/10.1353/sof.0.0264
28 Snow, K., Gattine, E., MacKinnon, S.E. (2022, January). Economic security of older women in Maine (Data Report). University of Southern Maine, Muskie School of Public Service, Cutler Institute.Prepared for Maine Women’s Lobby Education Fund. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5fe258011006361ee2898809/t/6217ec5b97c0541cc3a76406/1645735003998/Economic+Security+Older+Women+in+Maine+Report--FINAL+%282%29.pdf
29 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Discrimination. [Literature Summary]. Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. https://health.gov/healthypeople/priority-areas/social-determinants-health/literature-summaries/discrimination#cit3
30 Sears, B., Castleberry, N., Lin, A., and Mallory, C. (2024, August). LGBTQ people’s experiences of workplace discrimination and harassment (Report). UCLA, School of Law, Williams Institute. https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/publications/lgbt-workplace-discrimination/
31 Ibid
32 HRC Foundation. (No Date). The wage gap among LGBTQ+ workers in the United States (Report). https://www.hrc.org/resources/the-wage-gap-among-lgbtq-workers-in-the-united-states
“As a founder of a childcare center here in Maine, I have seen first hand how hard families work to afford childcare. The system is not working for anyone. We all deserve access to affordable childcare.”
— Meghann
“We started our family the day that we became a couple and decided to start our family — a family of two. It was only because I had access to the reproductive health care that I needed and wanted that I was able to form the family I have chosen.”
ENSURING REPRODUCTIVE &
GENDER-AFFIRMING HEALTH
— Amy
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Health justice is a form of gender justice. Historically women and gender diverse people lack access to adequate and comprehensive health services, including reproductive care, maternal care, basic preventative care and gender-affirming care. This lack of access limits women’s, trans and nonbinary people’s ability to participate more fully in their education, work, families and communities and the barriers only increase for women and gender diverse people in rural communities. These barriers have catastrophic results for people living in these regions of our state.
55% of the population is not a pre-existing condition.
The ability to choose when and how to have a family is essential to racial, gender, and economic justice. However, since the Dobbs decision states have worked to establish control over birthing people and currently there are 13 states with total abortion bans. This type of control directly affects people of color. Pregnant people who are BIPOC may have limited access to prenatal care, or access to only lower-quality prenatal care. They often have different and negative experiences with care providers., BIPOC communities not only have worse birthing health outcomes in Maine than their white counterparts, they have less access to prenatal care, which is a key to overall health.
Access to the full range of gender specific and reproductive healthcare is essential to economic justice.
Women living in states with greater access to reproductive health care - such as insurance coverage for contraception and infertility treatments, Medicaid coverage of family-planning services, and state funding for medically necessary abortions - have higher incomes, are less likely to work part-time, are more likely to move from unemployment into employment, and face less occupational segregation than women in states with more limited reproductive health care options. Increasing access to preventative screenings, like mammograms, are also shown to improve economic outcomes by decreasing people diagnosed with late-stage cancer making it easier to treat and for people to better participate in their communities.
Access to the full range of gender specific, gender-affirming, and reproductive care saves lives.
The health and mortality of pregnant and parenting people in Maine and the United States is among the worst in the developed world. Racism, structural barriers, the social determinants of health, and community and cultural norms create barriers to adequate reproductive and maternal health. Even with evidence suggesting that pregnant people who have access to midwifery care, doula support, community birth settings, and culturally competent care can improve birth outcomes, we still see inadequate access to these types of services. Policies that reduce barriers to necessary preventative screenings, like mammograms, are also shown to improve outcomes, reducing death rates of breast cancer through early detection. When trans and non-binary people have access to comprehensive culturally competent gender-affirming care they have better health outcomes throughout their lives, are able to participate more fully in their communities, and is associated with reduced rates of suicide.
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Ensuring that all Mainers have access to the healthcare they deserve, regardless of sex, gender identify, and race. We believe all people should have access to the full range of reproductive and trans-inclusive health care.
We particularly focus on areas where race, class, and gender intersect to create serious health inequity, such as in perinatal health.
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Where We’ve Been:
Maine expanded and protected abortion access to ensure that abortions in Maine are possible later in pregnancy when deemed necessary in the professional judgment of a physician.
A new law was passed last session that protects Maine health care providers who provide reproductive and transgender health care that is legal in Maine from hostile interference from other states where such care is banned. Basic rights, including reproductive autonomy, should not be subject to the uncertainty of political decisions, in Maine or elsewhere. This bill puts these protections into law to ensure that providers feel safe continuing to provide care in our state.
Another important new law prohibits the MaineCare program from discriminating in its reimbursement for medically necessary treatment based on the MaineCare member’s gender identity, gender expression, or on the basis that the MaineCare member is transgender.
Where We’re Going
Birthing health & access to support: Access to consistent, high-quality prenatal care is a key factor in improving perinatal health outcomes for every population. Among other important interventions, improving access to Doulas (care workers who can support a pregnant person throughout pregnancy and postpartum), and ensuring services are covered under Mainecare, would significantly improve outcomes.
Addressing access to menstrual products in schools: One in four students who get periods have struggled to afford period products. Not being able to afford period products can affect student attendance and academic success. Ensuring access to menstrual products for students is a clear way of making schools safer and more accessible for all students.
Investments in Family Planning services: Maine’s family planning clinics are essential to Maine’s public health infrastructure and their continued health and stability ensures the continued health of Maine and Maine’s women, especially those from our most vulnerable communities. Without active investment into maintaining family planning services across the state, thousands of women and families will risk losing critical healthcare.
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Report on the Racial Disparities in Prenatal Access in Maine written by the Permanent Commission on the Status of Racial, Indigenous, and Tribal Populations - This report outlines disparities in access to prenatal care for Maine’s racial, indigenous, and tribal populations and explores the causes of these disparities. The report offers key recommendations to create solutions to these disparities incorporating data, professional expertise, and the lived experiences of women with limited or no access to prenatal care.
Maine Doula Workforce Assessment conducted by the Maine Doula Coalition - This project report offers information to better understand the landscape of doula work in Maine. The results provide an overview of the doula workforce, and the challenges people face in accessing doula services.
Birthing Justice - This feature-length documentary film captures the experiences and challenges of Black women, their families, caretakers and advocates, and examines the structures and systems that determine disparate rates of mortality. Ultimately, this pivotal film celebrates the efforts to fix America’s broken medical system and transform this narrative of tragedy into one of hope.
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33 Torjussen, M. (2023, March). Expectant mothers face long drives as another rural Maine hospital discontinues its OB services. WMTW, ABC 8. https://www.wmtw.com/article/expectant-mothers-face-long-drives-as-another-rural-maine-hospital-discontinues-its-ob-services/43471419
34 https://www.guttmacher.org/monthly-abortion-provision-study
35 U.S. Dept of Health & Human Services Office on Women's Health. (2019, January 30). Prenatal care and tests. https://www.womenshealth.gov/pregnancy/youre-pregnant-now-what/prenatal-care-and-tests
36 Bahls, C. (2011). Achieving equity in health. Retrieved from: https://www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/hpb20111006.957918
37 Center for American Progress. https://www.americanprogress.org/article/linking-reproductive-health-care-access-labor-market-opportunities-women/#fn-442653-13
38 https://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/priorities/breast-cancer.html
39 Shea, C. (2024, August). CAHC’s Policy Perspective. Consumers for Affordable Healthcare. https://mainecahc.org/file_download/inline/0372ec3d-da4c-484a-974d-071464dcd133#:~:text=The%20most%20recent%20report%20from,maternal%20deaths%20per%20100%2C000%20births.
40 Maine Women’s Lobby. (2022). LD 1113: Racial disparities in prenatal access in Maine: Report to the Maine Legislature. Retrieved from: https://legislature.maine.gov/doc/7888
41 National Partnership for Women and Families. (2020, September). Improving our maternity care now: Four care models decisionmakers must implement for healthier moms and babies. https://nationalpartnership.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/improving-our-maternity-care-now.pdf
42 https://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/priorities/breast-cancer.html
43 https://www.hrc.org/resources/get-the-facts-on-gender-affirming-care
44 https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/press/ga-trans-suicide-press-release/
“I’ve seen firsthand why we need to expand options of reproductive care and access for everyone. As a reproductive care worker I have supported clients through full spectrum of reproductive experiences… and not everybody has the support systems they deserve.”
— Hannah
ENDING GENDER-BASED
& CARCERAL VIOLENCE
“We don't have to live this way. Gun violence IS preventable.”
— Nacole Palmer, Maine Gun Safety Coalition
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Gender based violence, including sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and stalking are public health crises in Maine and the United States.
This violence is rooted in a system of unequal power based on gender and disproportionately impacts women, trans, non-binary, and gender expansive adults and children.Nearly 1 in 2 women or 47.3% of women in the United States have reported any contact sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner at some point in their lifetime. In Maine 40% of women have experienced sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking by a partner at some point in their lifetime—nearly as many as every person in Maine living north of Augusta. Attacks on trans, non-binary, and gender expansive people are increasing with 2023 being declared a state of emergency by the Human Rights Campaign, and nearly 1 in 4 of the hate crimes reported were against LGBTQ+ people.
This type of violence creates substantial inequities in physical, emotional, and financial well-being specifically for women and LGBTQ+ people. These impacts are felt by individuals, families, and communities throughout our state.
Intimate partner and sexual violence has a direct link to economic security directly impacting women and children.
In a recent report on economic abuse in intimate partner relationships, the Maine Coalition to End Domestic Violence states that “abuse creates economic instability. And, in turn, economic instability reduces safety options for survivors and makes them more vulnerable to continued violence and isolation. The ability to access safety often hinges on access to economic resources, and while abuse can occur in any income bracket, people in poverty are nearly twice as likely to experience domestic violence.” The Maine Coalition Against Sexual Assault reiterates this point citing that researchers estimate the lifetime cost of rape at $122,461 per victim and in 2007 60.4% of sexual violence victims missed 1-5 days of work and 22.4% missed 11-plus days of work during the year after they were sexually assaulted.
There are dramatic disparities in the experience of violence in Indigenous populations and marginalized communities.
For Native American women and girls, the impact of gender-based violence is staggering. According to the CDC, Native American women and girls experienced the second highest rate of homicide in 2020 and homicide was in the top 10 leading causes of death for women and girls aged 1-45. Missing and murdered Indigenous people, especially for girls and women, is a crisis in our country. Colonization, racism and misogyny lead to systemic devaluation of Indigenous people, create jurisdictional issues, and decrease the urgency in criminal justice response.
In her testimony to the Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies of the US House Committee on Appropriations, US House of Representatives, Maulian Bryant, Executive Director of the Wabanaki Alliance and Ambassador of the Penobscot Nation, states “the reasons for the [MMIP] crisis are threefold: societal indifference, jurisdiction and coordination issues, and a lack of support and funding for tribal law enforcement agencies.” She continues to share that “the false conceptions of our people often lead to victim blaming and attitudes that minimize attention given to MMIP cases” and that “jurisdictional issues are equally harmful. There needs to be clear duties and processes delineated before, during, and after these crimes occur. Until recently, the Wabanaki people in Maine lacked equal access to the tribal provisions of the Violence Against Women Act due to our outdated and oppressive 1980 Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act.”
We also know that the data is not usually available to show the true extent of violence in historically excluded communities. In the words of Heather Zimmerman of Preble Street, “The amount of sexual violence that exists for women in homelessness is unfathomable and probably uncapturable.” This is true for any population that is not readily visible to mainstream systems, not only unhoused Mainers, but those who are incarcerated, who live in residential facilities, who are experiencing sexual exploitation, and more. Many times these individuals are further victimized by the systems created to hold aggressors accountable and are used to further harm victims.
Gun violence and mass shootings are a gender-based issue.
Between 2015 and 2022, over 19,000 people were shot and killed or wounded in the United States in a mass shooting. These mass shootings are an overwhelmingly male phenomenon with men carrying out 97% of attacks. There is growing attention on connections between gender and mass shootings, including gender-based mass shootings, including when the shooter cites a grievance toward a specific woman and toward women in general. We also know that guns increase risks for victims and survivors of domestic violence, with 67% of female intimate partner homicide victims in Maine being killed with a gun.
The criminal justice system is an inadequate route to justice for many survivors.
Many survivors of intimate partner and sexual violence do not choose to report to law enforcement. In many cases law enforcement is not able to effectively respond to these crimes. For example, approximately 400 sexual assaults are reported to Maine law enforcement in any given year - out of approximately 14,000. Of these, very few cases result in prosecution.
Additionally, alternative forms of justice are especially supportive of victims and survivors from oppressed communities. For example, Black or trans survivors may be less likely to report crimes they experience to the criminal justice system, as they have been disproportionately harmed by this system.
Criminalization of non-violent activities increases violence for all. For example, criminalizing consensual sex work increases violence against sex workers by clients, police, and the public. It also limits sex workers’ access to health care systems and justice, and increases their economic instability. Sex workers are more likely to be in communities who are already marginalized by mainstream systems, such as trans women of color. Criminalization simply compounds that experience. The system itself perpetuates violence, which does not address anti-violence work. Women experience violence while incarcerated, incarceration and subsequent criminal records increase the barriers to employment, housing, safety net services, and education. Incarceration also disrupts family connections, inflicting trauma on another generation.
The criminal justice system is often seen as a means of accountability for gender-based violence. However, the data is clear that this is often not victim-centered, and many victims and survivors report desiring more holistic forms of accountability.
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Ensuring that Maine’s gender-based service providers have the resources to support all survivors in Maine with the healing and path to justice that they choose.
Dismantling carceral systems that perpetuate trauma and harm, such as criminalization of substance use and sex work.
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Where We’ve Been:
In the wake of the tragic mass shooting in Lewiston in Maine, the legislature took major steps to address gun violence, and invest in mental health services statewide.
There is now a mandatory 72 hour waiting period between purchase and possession for certain firearm purchases which significantly decrease risk of lethally escalated violence, such as domestic violence or stalking, and self harm.
An additional law expands crisis mental health services across the state, improves Maine’s extreme risk protection order law, and expands background checks on firearm sales.
Addressing the lack of crisis mental health infrastructure is vital to ensuring all Mainers can feel safe and supported, and can support their loved ones in crisis. Strengthening systems to ensure those who may be a danger to themselves or others– for example, perpetrators of domestic violence– have less access to firearms is critical to keeping all Mainers safe.
Where We’re Going
Filling the VOCA funding gap: With a looming $6 million Federal funding gap in the Victims of Crime Fund, all core victim services in Maine, including legal services, victim advocates, DV services, victim services for immigrants and refugees, are at risk. While the Legislature took steps to fill the funding gap for one year (2024-2025), long-term investment is paramount to ensure sustained, ongoing funding for these critical services.
Increased salaries for Sexual Assault Advocates: The current average salary for sexual assault advocates is $32,000, an unsustainably low wage that’s driving too many advocates out of the field. By increasing starting compensation for sexual assault advocates to at least $45,000/year, we can take steps to re-stablizing this workforce to ensure that services remain available to all who need them.
Strengthening gun safety laws: Gun violence – and the lack of strong regulations– is a gendered issue, especially when it intersects with domestic violence. After important advancements last session, passing an Extreme Risk Protection Order remains very important in order for family members to be able to get a court order to temporarily prevent someone in crisis from accessing firearms.
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Report on Maine Certified Domestic Violence Intervention Programs 2019-2024 by the Maine Coalition to End Domestic Violence - This report reviews Maine’s Certified Domestic Violence Intervention Programs (CDVIP) and offers an analysis of their impact on survivor safety through survivor surveys. Results consistently affirm that survivors are safest when participants attend and complete CDVIP and that non-compliance and non-completion are causes for concern about victim safety.
Gender Justice and Participatory Pretrial Training Video Presentation shared by Maine Prisoner Advocacy Coalition - MPAC has shared this training presented by the Center for Effective Public Policy on how to reduce jail populations and increase safety and well-being for women, primary caretakers, and their children through a focus on gender justice in pretrial.
Legislative Brief on Firearms, Violence, and Gender in Maine by the Maine Women’s Lobby - Our nation’s gun violence epidemic has a deep impact on the safety, health, and wellbeing of women and gender minorities. This brief focuses on the impact of gun violence on women and gender minorities, and points to policy solutions to keep our communities safer.
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45 https://www.everytown.org/issues/mass-shootings/
46 Maine Women’s Lobby. Firearms, violence and gender in Maine. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5fe258011006361ee2898809/t/65e5bfd32dc6a110bcc40779/1709555669196/Gun+Safety+Brief+%282%29.pdf
47 Leemis, R. Friar, N. Khatiwada, S. Chen, M. Kresnow, M-j. Smith, S. Caslin, S. and Basile, K. 2022, October. “National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey: 2016/2017 Report on Intimate Partner Violence”. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/nisvs/documentation/NISVSReportonIPV_2022.pdf
48 https://www.maine.gov/sos/womens-comm/documents/wc1annualreport.pdf
49 Human Rights Campaign Foundation. 2024, November. Report: The Epidemic of Violence Against the Transgender & Gender-Expansive Community in the U.S. https://reports.hrc.org/an-epidemic-of-violence-2024#introduction
50 Maine Coalition to End Domestic Violence. 2019, February. A report on the impact of economic abuse on survivors of domestic violence in Maine.https://www.mcedv.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Economic-Abuse-Report_FINAL.pdf
51 Maine Coalition Against Sexual Assault. Statistics. https://www.mecasa.org/stats.html
52 https://www.bia.gov/service/mmu/missing-and-murdered-indigenous-people-crisis
53 https://www.wabanakialliance.com/2024-congressional-testimony/
“While people have their own unique experiences and paths, the average incarcerated woman in Maine is a trauma survivor who struggles with substance use. Those experiences are almost certainly connected. It doesn’t have to be this way.”
— Destie Hohman Sprague, Maine Women’s Lobby
About the Roadmap
This project included four primary efforts:
A review of population-level data sources, from the United States Census to the Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey. Where we were able to, we connected directly with individuals who oversee or contribute to those data sources.
An evaluation of the 2023-2024 Roadmap, which includes a review of the changing landscape over the two year timeframe and a comparison to the current political landscape and a review of how this impacts the disparities that Maine women and gender expansive people experience today. This review supported narrowing our scope and refocusing our efforts on what will have the most significant impact on gender justice in Maine.
An analysis of policy priorities in the 131st Legislature, from Paid Family and Medical Leave to an Inclusive Equal Rights Amendment, we reviewed all of our policy priorities over the past years with a focus on the 131st Legislature to see where we may need adapt or refocus in the 132nd Legislature.
A literature review of a range of policy resources, both local and national, such as materials from the Institute on Women and Policy Research. We’d like to acknowledge and thank staff from Family Values at Work and the Institute on Women and Policy Research their support.
Want to contribute to the 2025-2026 Gender Justice Roadmap? The Reading and Resources sections are compiled from a variety of community partners and volunteers, and we welcome adding more to our list! If you would like to suggest a resource (movies, documentaries, podcasts, articles or books) to one of our priority issues please contact us via email - info@mainewomen.org.